Marine triathlete killed by hit-and-run driver in San Diego Captain Klokow was cycling near Miramar Air Station by Timothy Carlson IT Senior Correspondent This report filed August 24, 2005 San Diego, Calif. - Marine Captain Patrick Klokow, a member of the All-Marine Triathlon team, was killed by a hit-and-run driver while cycling near Miramar Marine Corps Air Station about 6 am yesterday, according to San Diego police. Klokow, a 29-year-old U.S. Naval Academy graduate, was riding southbound on Kearny Villa Road at the on-ramp to southbound State Route 163 when he was struck from behind, San Diego police traffic Sgt. Jeff Fellows told the San Diego Union-Tribune newspaper. The victim was wearing a helmet, reflectors, and bright-colored clothing when he was hit, said Fellows. Fellows told the Union-Tribune that the cyclist was riding in an area where it was legal to ride. Investigators added that after the rider, who was later identified as Klokow, was hit, the first vehicle fled the scene. According to police, Klokow was then struck by a delivery truck and, possibly, a Metropolitan Transit System bus. Both of those drivers stopped. At 11:15 am on August 23rd, while traffic was shut down for the investigation for three miles on Kearny Villa Road, police detained the 58-year-old driver of a badly damaged minivan in connection with the investigation. San Diego police said that the minivan had a broken windshield and a dented hood "consistent with what occurred this morning," said Fellows. The driver of the minivan denied involvement in the collision with the cyclist, claiming he struck a load of lumber that extended from a truck that stopped abruptly in front of him earlier that morning. The driver of the minivan was released, while his vehicle was impounded and will undergo forensic testing, said Fellows. According to Don Norcross of the San Diego Union-Tribune, Klokow played catcher for three years for the Naval Academy varsity baseball team. After graduation and marriage to fellow Naval Academy graduate Anne Klokow, a soccer player who ran the 400 and 800 meters at Annapolis, Patrick Klokow started running, and then competing in duathlons, and finally triathlons for the last five years. Klokow had a marathon best of 3 hours 8 minutes and completed his second Ironman this spring. He finished Ironman Arizona in 10 hours, 11 minutes, earning 8th place of 91 entrants in the 25-29 age group. His finishing time improved his Ironman debut at CaliforniaMan last year by one hour and 6 minutes. Klokow's wife, Anne, is a Marine helicopter pilot and Patrick was a training instructor at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot.

This sort of thing makes me absolutely sick to my stomach.  PLEASE be careful out there---more so when you're driving then when you're riding.  This rider was obviously as careful as he could have been, yet the driver's carelessness ended his life.  No doubt a cellphone was probably in use.  This is only my speculation as I can't imagine why else a driver wouldn't see this guy, and WHY was this driver in an area where cyclists are legally allowed to ride? 

I'm sorry I haven't written lately.  I've actually been sick.  One of my co-workers came to work sick, and I caught what he had.  I haven't been able to train, and I've just been a couch potato for the past week.  I'm still feeling bad albeit a bit better than I have been feeling.

My ass is sore today because I had a patient pass out on my yesterday. We were talking, and I stood him up for his x-ray. He was hanging on to the chest stand when he started shaking. I was standing right next to him, so I just grabbed him and pulled him on top of me where we fell on to the floor together. Thank goodness he wasn't huge. He wasn't tiny, but he wasn't huge. I fell back against the wall, but my patient never touched the floor. That made me happy. I didn't know if he had died or had simply passed out because he wasn't responding to my questions of "Are you okay?" His eyes never closed either. Finally, he answered. He didn't know where he was or what had happened, but he had guessed that he'd passed out. I told him that he did. The man had lung cancer. I told him we could just sit for awhile on the floor which we did. Then I got him back up into his wheelchair and shot his x-rays there!
I saw Cinderella Man last night. What a great movie. You should see it. It's a feel good movie for sure
I don't have many stories to tell lately because I've been working, and life is kind of boring I guess. I don't mind it. Quiet times are nice too.

Here's a fanmail:

Andrea,

Hello. I hope this reaches you. My name is Emily. I just wanted to write you and tell you how much of an inspiration you are! I ran across you on a website and told myself I need to know more about this amazing woman. I have been reading your journals, and look forward to them. They are encouraging to say the least. I had just started running this past summer, and then this fall tore my acl in a car accident. I'm really looking forward to running again, but have to be patient. Very hard to do, as I am sure you know. Well, I'm sorry you didn't do as good as you wanted in the Ironman, but you did incredible to me and I'm sure to many others as well. Anyway, your an awesome athlete and I'm inspired by what you continue to do. Keep it rockin! Always a supporter for ya!

Take care.

Emily M. Tousley

What a sweetheart. I have no doubt that Emily will be running again stronger than ever.

It is now legal for same sex couples to "marry" in Canada.  The U.S. is just so far behind; it's embarassing.  I love America, but sheesh!  I think you can "marry" in Australia as well and maybe even in New Zealand.  If people would quit throwing stones at each other in this country maybe we, too, could appreciate all walks of life more.

 

This email is from a man in Toronto.  He's such a sweetheart.

as I read your journal entry; it was inspirational and you should be incredibly proud of your perseverance.

 

Finishing on a tough day is a greater accomplishment then winning on an easy one.

 

 

Best,

Scott

 

Yesterday was bizarre. I had a feeling it was going to be a weird day, and it was. I received an email from a journalist friend of mine who said that a CAT. 4 rider was injured in Tour de Toona in Altoona, PA. Evidently she is permanently paralyzed from the neck down; although, she has use of her arms and hands. That's all I know about it. Tears streamed down my face, and I just stared blankly at the computer screen after I read the email. My heart ached for this woman.
I remember Tour de Toona well. I had some good rides there, but I also broke my sacrum there. Then a couple of years later Henk Vogels, a world-class rider from Australia, broke his neck there. He's fine now and tearin' up the roads again. Last year one of my teammates essentially broke her face there. Tina Mayolo, one of this country's greatest sprinters, broke her collarbone there back in 1999 or so. That same year Erin Carter from Canada crashed so hard in the criterium that none of us wanted to race after seeing her lying there unconscious in a big pool of blood. I don't know what it is about that particular race. It's 6 days long and isn't particularly dangerous, but bad things just seem to "happen" there more so than any other race I've participated in.
I went on the Tuesday night ride with a little funk hanging over me because I was thinking about this rider I had read about. I'm riding along in the back of the pack when all of a sudden I hear the sound of bikes crashing. Three riders went down out of about 30, so it wasn't so bad. None of them was seriously injured either. Then the medium group (there's fast, medium, and slow) came up, and 2 riders went down when one guy couldn't get his foot unclipped from his pedal. They basically just fell over, so no one got hurt.
The ride kind of split up because some riders went on while others stayed back. I stayed back a bit to make sure the riders who went down first were all okay and had rides back home. I checked out Polar Bear (our nickname for this dude) who hit his elbow pretty hard. I told him to go get that looked at because he had a puncture wound, and I didn't know when his last tetanus shot was. Also, he landed on it pretty hard.
So, anyway, I catch up to a group of 3 riders, and we're going along when I see a police car parked across the roadway at a big intersection up ahead. I'm thinking to myself that it doesn't look right because he's facing the wrong way. I look over to the right and see a group of cyclists sitting on the corner. "Jesus," I'm thinking, "what now?" Turns out this schmuck in an SUV pulled a gun on one of the riders and hit him in the face. Evidently, the rider and his fiance were trying to get into the turning lane in order to turn left, and the guy in the SUV wasn't allowing them to do so. Essentially, he was using his truck as a weapon. The rider approached the vehicle and told the guy they were trying to get over. The driver snatched the sunglasses off of the rider and hit him in the face during the process. The rider grabbed the driver's sunglasses AND took the keys out of the guy's truck so that he couldn't leave ALL while still on his bike! Now, THOSE are some bike handling skills! The cops were there in a flash with guns drawn, and the guy was arrested immediately. The dude should be charged with several counts of endangerment because I was told that he pointed the gun at all of the riders while finally positioning the gun on Charles (the rider he had the altercation with). I could go on and on with charges I would file i.e. assault and battery, some type of vehicular endangerment, brandishing a firearm, etc. There were plenty of witnesses, AND (this is the good part)---Charles' fiance is an attorney!!! LOL!!
I left that scene after I saw that everyone was going to be okay. I was in a hurry to get home at that point and hoped that my journey would be a safe one. Alas it was, and my blonde Oreos were waiting for me. I LOVE those cookies!

This is an email from a gal in France. She first contacted me last year.

Hello
In september , I have start the triathlon. I have saw you on the web and....I was very amazing!!!
I like a lot of sports, I have startded with fencing but I have broken the ligments right knee's...And after, I started to ride horses and judged them.
My ex-girl friend was a good rider. But I separated from her et began to play tennis.
This year, I'm playing tennis on thuesday, doing exercices of body-building three days by week and on saturday, for 3 1/2 hours, a triathlon training (ride, run and swim).
But I must stop on june because I have a problem with my thyroid.
After, I hope that I will ride, run and swim again.
My girl friend isn't a sport women, but she rode with me when I ran.
I hope what I have written it's correct. Knows as it me please.
Currently, I take americans lessons to tell better and because, I'm going to USA on my vacations this year (september).
I went in California in 1997 for 3 weeks( my first big travel!!) and in New York in 2002 for 5 days.
Yours faithfully.
Caroline

I have not been on here in a bit because I sold my house and moved in with a friend of mine. I HATE moving!! I didn't realize how much crap I'd accumulated. Living alone in house with lots of storage space will do that I guess. The move was good for me in that it enabled me to see and get rid of a bunch of STUFF!

I didn't work out during the week I was moving because I really didn't have the time. Now, I feel SO out of shape. It's amazing what a few days off does to you when you're not already in great shape. A few days off during the season when your body needs it can rejuvenate you, but a few days off when your body doesn't need it makes you feel like a slug!

I received this email today:



As a runner and wanna-be triathlete I have followed your career for a bit. I just want to say it is fantastic to read your blog and learn about the, "behind the scenes," of different races.

I live in the biking capital of the U.S.- Davis, CA. I have a hybrid and a aluminum Giant modified (meaning thrown together bells and whistles on a frame :) ) tri- bike. This fall I think I will add to my collection. Something zippy.

Maybe you can mention on your blog what type of bike you train on. Is it the same as the bike you race with?

Keep up the good work on your site, and best wishes in
your future endeavors!


Sincerely,

Melissa Regester

I ride a Javelin, and I train and race on the same bikes. Back in the day when I raced bicycles professionally for AutoTrader.com we had a "home" bike and race bike. Our home bikes were kept at home for us to train on, but they were the same model bikes that we raced on, so everything was kept the same. For teams who can afford this it's great because the riders don't have to fly all over the place with their bikes, and the team mechanic doesn't have to keep putting them back together and taking them apart. We had a van that the team mechanic drove from race to race, and sometimes the riders would travel this way depending on where the races were. We always stayed in the Crown Plaza hotels, and we always ate at the nicest restaurants (as long as they served alcohol since this was a prerequisite for our team director). Mostly, the riders flew to and from races since this was easiest on our bodies. Plus, many of us liked to go home when we could. I think I was home 142 days that year.

I have a Javelin road bike and a Javelin time trial bike; although, it is a few years old, so I hope to be getting the new time trial bike they have. If not, I'll be sending my resume out to other companies. My first choice will be Litespeed; I still have my Litespeed Ultimate road bike from my AutoTrader.com days. I LOVE that bike!